Exile
by queencatherine.demedici
Summary: Because of a mistake Henry made, the royal couple is forced to resign their reign and to leave the french court. They have to hide amongst farmers in a small village near the coast. They have to live an ordinary live, which is sort of explosive with a angry Catherine, willing to do anything for her return to the court. It gets dangerous as secrets from the past are revealed.
1. Chapter 1

Welcome to another Reign Fanfiction :). This story takes place in 01x14 "Dirty Laundry". Mary and Francis are not married yet and I changed some other things (I can't even remember which lmao). I hope you like it anyways! Have fun reading this!

Major ship: Catherine x Henry

Minor ship: Mary x Francis

"Queen Catherine?" a servant poked his head into the royal chambers, where Catherine was about to prepare some tinctures for Mary.

"What is it?" She wanted to know while frowning at a bottle with clear liquid in her hand, before putting it away.

"You are needed in the boardroom of the Privy Council." Catherine raised her right eyebrow in astonishment. Normally she was not welcome there from Henry's side and she avoided arguing with him. It was tiring. The servant disappeared and Catherine got up from her chair, sighing. She walked briskly through the corridors and pushed the door open vigorously.

Henry was sitting in a chair, his royal looseness almost completely gone. He looked ... scared. Francis stood behind him, worried and serious while Mary paced restlessly.

"What's going on?" the queen asked, but only looking at Henry. Mary stopped her silly pacing and Francis put a hand on her back.

"Did someone follow you? Has anyone seen you?", her eldest son wanted to know and Catherine shook her head in confusion.

"What's going on?" She stepped to the table, propped herself on the palms of her hands and looked Henry in the eyes.

"I... I was with the Bohemian Countess in my chambers and ... well," Henry finally began to tell under the piercing eyes of his wife. Bored, she sat down on a chair opposite him.

"And that's why such an uprising is made here? That's more of a political benefit."

"No, you don't understand Catherine," Henry said, panic written in his face, "she fell out of my window. She is dead."

"While you ...? Henry! Do you realize what that means?" Catherine jumped up again, circled the table and grabbed the king by the shoulders, "We are trying to prevent a war with these people!"

"I'm well aware of that!", he answered and violently shook off his wife's hands.

Francis went between the two. "Mary and I have a plan."

"Oh yes? And what do I have to do with it?", Catherine was visibly dissatisfied with the situation and didn'thesitate to show it.

"Well, it's less a plan, more like a ... stopgap," Mary said, looking at Catherine uncertainly. "The duke has already gotten wind of it, and he withdraws the war declaration on only one condition."

"Which one?", Catherine grabbed Mary by the shoulders, which flinched slightly, "WHICH ONE?"

"You have to disappear. Henry will resign and give the crown to Francis. You're taken to a safe place that- "

"WHAT?!" Catherine exclaimed, "Because of HIM, I have to give my crown away? I wouldn't have anything left! What about my other children, Francis, your younger siblings?"

"Don't forget, you have your crown because of me" Henry interjected, looking at her.

"How could I? You always like to remind me, "she hissed back.

"Catherine, they'll think you're involved," Mary's voice gained strength, "We'll find a reason for the resignation and your disappearance, but you must leave here as soon as possible."

"You can't possibly be serious ... no ... what about Charles and Henry and ...?"

"Catherine", Mary interrupted her mother-in-law again, "we'll take good care of your children."

"Oh yes? Will you do anything for their protection? Will you die to protect them?"

"That's enough," Francis touched his mother's arm. "Yes, we will. But only if you both disappear on the spot!"

Henry got up unexpectedly powerful and took Catherine by the arm and pulled her along. "Where exactly are you going to send them?" Mary wanted to know when both were gone.

"In a small village called Cherrueix. Nobody will know them there."

"And what do we invent for a story why the royal couple suddenly disappears and you are now regent? Francis, that won't look good for us" Mary worriedly took his hand.

"Well, we'll come up with something suitable," Francis answered absent-mindedly, looking after his parents.

As Catherine and Henry watched the courtyard from the shadows, they noticed an inconspicuous carriage. Leith sat on the wagon seat and signaled to the royal couple. Catherine hurried towards the young man, followed by Henry.

"Your Majesties," he whispered, "please get on the carriage. You can find clothes on the benches."

Despite his position, his tone was very firm and tolerated no contradiction. Catherine, who had no energy left to fight back, allowed Henry to push her in the carriage and prayed to God and all the saints that their children would be well.

She climbed into the rickety carriage and felt a bundle of clothes in the dark. Henry must have found something too, because he threw her shortly thereafter some of the coarse material.

"That's yours," he said, groping his way forward to take the other bundle out of Catherine's hand.

"Don't you dare!" irritated, she slapped his hand away as his fingers stroked her décolleté. Henry bit back a laugh and stretched out his hands, on which Catherine put the clothes a few seconds later.

The moon came out from behind the clouds and shone cold on the bumpy carriage. Henry had already changed his pants and shoes, now he was sitting with an unclothed upper body and grinned cheekily. Catherine, however, was anything but good-humored, she took the shirt next to Henry and pressed it to his chest. Her husband kept grinning until she squeezed her fingernails through the fabric into his skin. He grimaced.

"You took everything I had when you desecrated our marriage again, whorebuck. Just don't think that I'll ever forgive you for that" she snarled in his ear and sat back down on her seat. Henry was too tired to argue with Catherine. He took the shirt, ignored the marks she had left and pulled it over. He put his crown and the precious clothing in the storage space under his seat.

Catherine stared out the window, not moving an inch. Henry looked the other way until he fell asleep. Before Catherine got rid of her clothes as well, she made sure that Henry was still asleep. She undid the closure of the overcoat and stripped it off. To their luck, it was warm and they didn't have to worry about freezing.

Catherine pulled a coarse tunic over the peasant undergarment and removed both earrings and her precious necklace, which she also hid under her bench, along with the crown and her robe. The former queen untied her gem-set hair clips from her curls and with a narrow red cloth, she tied them together. Finally, Catherine replaced her precious shoes with some basic leather shoes.

"Oh, Henry," she said softly, looking at herself and her husband, "what did we become?"

The village they're going to didn't exist at that time, well I don't think anyone cares XD


	2. Chapter 2

When it was morning at the French court no one knew why the royal couple had disappeared, and a panic broke out. So Francis ordered the entire court to come to the throne room before breakfast. Mary was not with him, she had stayed in her chambers.

"Where is our king?" Shouted a few nobles in the general unrest. Francis raised his hand and the crowd slowly fell silent.

"The king had a life-threatening accident last night. He was sent to the countryside with the queen to heal. Unfortunately," he continued, "the king will no longer be able to rule, which is why he has appointed me regent."

A murmur went through the crowd and Francis looked into mostly neutral faces. He hadn't made himself many enemies at the court yet. The Bohemian count nodded slightly to him and disappeared from the hall.

"After the wedding with Mary, Queen of Scotland, I will take over the crown of my father."

A little later, Francis knocked on the doors of the chambers of Mary. She sat on some cushions, on her bed, looking pale and uncomfortable.

"Mary?" He almost fell on her bed and she smiled, "Are you alright?"

He put a hand to her cheek and she closed her fingers around it.

"I feel a little uncomfortable, but I will soon be fine," she tried to calm him down. Francis sat at the edge of the bed and held Mary's hand.

"I really hope so. We have to marry in a week." It took a few seconds for Mary to understand what he had just said to her.

"You mean ...? In a week? Francis this is amazing! ", happily, she gave him a kiss.

"Nobody can stop us now from just doing it," he promised, squeezing her hand.

"Tell me," said Mary, "how did the nobles respond?"

"They were surprisingly well-disposed to me. Some have congratulated us on the engagement" Francis laughed "they want to be good friends with the future royal couple."

"Francis", Mary slightly pushed him away when he wanted to kiss her again, "your mother will forever hate us for it."

Francis gave a brief breath, got up and made a silly bow. "Then I'd better take care of my siblings now."

* * *

Henry woke up as a warm hand settled on his shoulder. Or better, when that hand slapped his shoulder.

"Wake up, we are there!" When he opened his eyes, all he could see was Catherine's back, climbing out of the door of the carriage.

"Now? We'll be recognized! ", he objected and Leith, who was holding out his hand to Catherine, looked up.

„You will have two more day marches ahead of you, from here" he explained, picking up a bundle from the carriage and handing it to his king, "follow the road north and you will come to Cherrueix unmolested. At the edge of the village is an abandoned smithy, the family has recently died out. In this bag you have" nodded his chin in the direction of the cloth bag, "some money for a month to make ends meet and start the business."

Before one of them could answer, Leith swung himself back on to the carriage. He threw two coiled skins to Henry, who caught them slightly overwhelmed. "When the situation calms down, you will be taken back to the court."

"When will that be?", asked Catherine, who missed all the food, her eyecream and poisons (of course, her children) already painfully.

"I don't know," Leith shrugged, "in a year or two maybe." With that, he turned the carriage over and left the former royal couple alone.

Henry immediately untied the bag to look at its contents. Some food, a leather water bottle, a bag of gold and a dagger lay in it.

"Well, after all, a dagger," appraising Catherine looked at the food. It consisted of some fresh bread and salted beef jerky. She took one of the coiled skins, hung it on the leather strap over her shoulder and followed the path. She did not even bother complaining.

Henry knotted the bundle and tucked the dagger into his waistband before stomping after Catherine. They wandered on the path without words, the sun was burning warm on their shoulders and the air was dusty and dry. Henry was always walking a few yards behind his wife, Catherine had such a hostile aura that even he did not even dared to come closer than ten feet to her. After walking for a few hours, they came to a river in the shadow of a forest. Catherine went to the bank of the river and began to wash her face feverishly with water.

"What are you doing?" Henry asked, standing next to her.

Catherine looked at him without understanding and with a wet face. "Don't you think, that one will recognize me as a noble woman?"

"Why should they?" Annoyed, Henry drops his luggage and fumbled for the bottle.

"I'm make up, you fool," she replied unnerved.

Henry grunted something incomprehensible and filled the bottle with the clear water. After a few minutes Catherine dried herself on the sleeves of the tunic and Henry caught a glimpse of her face. The freckles, which tragically always were covered with a layer of powder, and the hazel eyes that glowed with anger. She had her rosy lips compressed into a thin line.

"What is Henry?" She asked irritably.

"I just ...", he reached out a hand to her skin, but she jerked back and shook her head slightly. His hand hovered for a moment between them, until he took it back.

Without another word, Catherine turned away and took her luggage.

„God, what did you think while creating this woman", Henry looked up to the sky, almost pleading, but quickly got up when he heard a voice. He stepped out of the hollow and spotted a man of nobility speaking to Catherine sitting alone on his horse. Henry approached and the stranger man stopped in the middle of his sentence.

"I know you," he dismounted from his horse and looked at the two in detail. Catherine involuntarily took a step back.

"Who are you?" Henry challenged and grasped the handle of the dagger behind his back.

"That doesn't matter," the man replied, scratching his dark beard while his other hand rested on his sword hilt, "Much more interesting is who you are." He grinned slightly diabolic and Catherine tried to save the situation.

"We are two travelers, we visit our relatives in Cherrueix."

"No, no you are not," he came up to Catherine and raised her chin with his hand, "your majesty."

* * *

Yes, I like cliffhangers an no I'm not sorry XD

I hope you had fun reading it anyways :)

Aaaand sorry for mistakes I may have made.

See you at next Chap,

Lucy 3


	3. Chapter 3

For a second Catherine threw Henry a look. He didn't know why that look moved him so, but it forced him to act. With a quick movement he pulled the dagger and pushed it without hesitation the stranger in the side. He coughed and a trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. Catherine snatched away from his touch before he collapsed with a soft sigh.

"Damn Henry!" In panic, she looked around to see if anyone came the way, but they seemed to be alone in the forest.

"What should I have done?", Henry wiped the dagger on the shirt of the body and stowed it.

"We ... we have to take him away ... bury him or ... Henry we have to get away from here", she grabbed the corpse on its upper arm, and Henry helped her pull the heavy body into the shadows of some close-up trees.

"I know ... we take his clothes off and ..." Catherine took the gold that the man had with him and removed his sword and scabbard from his belt.

"What are you doing?" Henry asked confused.

"His clothes and sword are telling who he was. I'll bury everything, along with his signet ring. "Catherine also took it from him.

Henry struggled with the stranger's clothes. It was more difficult than expected to take off a lifeless body's clothes and after a few moments Henry was sweating in the hot air. When they had finally taken everything off, Henry took the body under the arms and dragged it deeper into the forest, while Catherine returned to the path where the stranger's horse grazed quietly. In one arm the clothes, she took the reins, tied the animal to a tree and then hurried to the river bed. She longed for soft beds, baths and servants as she rummaged in the dirt with her bare hands. Some time later, all clues to the nobleman's lineage had disappeared. Catherine fastened their luggage behind the saddle of the brown horse as Henry came running out of the woods, sweating. „We have to get away from here, right now."

Catherine quickly untied the horse and led it to a nearby stone to ascend. As she sat, she felt Henry ascending behind her and she tensed slightly. He took the reins from her hands, she grabbed the saddle-knob and tried to gain as much distance as possible between herself and her husband. Henry kicked this heels on the flanks of the animal. With a snort, the horse made a jump and galloped off.

Meanwhile, the French court was a rather boisterous mood. The preparations for the royal wedding were a lot of work that Mary had left to her court ladies. The three had agreed, and especially Kenna and Aylee seemed to glow up in questions of decoration and food. Greer had talked to Francis and made a guest list.

As the girls sat in the garden on a blanket between menu plans, floral arrangements, and seating plans, Charles, Henry, and the nanny were playing catching. Mary had three-year-old Margaret in her lap and listened to her ladies-in-waiting.

As Francis approached them across the lawn, she apologized and joined him with Margaret. "Hello dear", Francis gave Mary a kiss and stroked Margaret's cheek, "the bishop for our wedding has agreed." "That's wonderful," Mary was pleased, "everything else is unimportant."

"Well, it would be very bad for me if I stood alone at the altar", he suddenly became serious and took Mary's free hand.

"I promise you," she gave him a gentle kiss, a fleeting touch of her lips, "I'll be there."  
"Mary, play with us," Charles shouted and waved to her.

"I'm coming, "Mary put Margaret on the floor and Francis took his sister's hand.  
"We're a good team," Francis smiled, but Mary only grinned strangely and turned around without another word.

Francis remained a bit helpless.

When the kids had enough of playing, it was already early evening. Mary's ladies-in-waiting had moved their plans inside and the nanny called the French princes for dinner. Charles was still missing, so Mary made her way to the place where she suspected the prince.

She was right. Charles talked to Clarissa. At least that's how it seemed. As she approached, Charles had already turned away and walked towards her.

"What is it Charles? Is everything ok?"

"She's gone," shrugging and a little sad, he looked at her "I haven't seen Clarissa since last night."

"I'm sorry to hear that. But maybe she has explored a new secret passage? She's sure to return soon," Mary Charles consoled, who then nodded and run back to his nanny.

Mary also wanted to turn back, then decided against it. She circled the wall and looked into the dark corridor. "Clarissa?" Her voice echoed off the stone walls.

She walked in a few steps and found a note on the floor. Quickly Mary took it and walked away from the corridor.

 _A few hours earlier..._

Within an hour, the two brought as much distance as possible between themselves and the crime scene. Henry throttled the speed and the horse carried them now much more slowly.

"What did you do to him?" Catherine asked her husband after a while.

"I let him bleed out. On the ground."

"Maybe we're lucky and the wolves find him," Catherine hoped.  
Before Henry could answer, they heard several male voices calling out a name.  
"Prince Conde", it sounded again and again through the forest, "Prince Conde!"  
Terrified, Catherine turned to Henry.

We killed a Bourbon prince," she whispered, her voice shaking.

"All the better," mumbled Henry back, "this way our throne is less endangered."

Catherine ignored his comment, she thought feverishly. How could she haven't seen his coat of arms and his seal?

"Henry, Henry, we have to hide," she wanted to take the reins from her husband, but he avoided her grip.

"How come? We are two simple farmers, nothing more. "

"Do you enjoy this? Is this some kind of game to you?", Catherine raged, "They'll recognize us. And if they don't, then his horse. "

With these words, she managed to grab the reins and steered the horse deeper into the undergrowth.

 _A little later…_

"That's all your fault," Henry grumbled as he pushed a branch out of his field of vision.

"Oh yes? Who had to kill a prince? "Catherine shot back.

"He threatened you," Henry justified himself.

"I could have talked to him," she protested, glancing around in the darkness, "then at least we wouldn't have gotten lost."

* * *

The main reason, you get this hapter earlier than expected, is that I'm a nice person. jk haha hope you had fun reading, leave a review :)


	4. Chapter 4

There's no excuse for putting this up so late... I'm sorryyyyy! Hope you have fun reading anyways and yeah bye see you at the end :)

* * *

By now it was so dark that one could only vaguely recognize the trees. As Catherine was struck by a tree branch again, she climbed off the horse. "It doesn't make sense," she began, and Henry dismounted as well. "We have to stay here," her husband finished her thoughts, looking around in the darkness.

At the foot of a slight rise he tied the horse to a tree and took the skins from the saddle. Catherine had followed him and took one from Henry's hand. Despite the summer temperatures during the day, it was cool and a cold wind rushed through the trees. Catherine tried not to shiver and put the rough fur over her shoulders. Henry stashed her food and money in a hollow of the roots of the big tree under which they sought shelter. Catherine sat close to the tree trunk and leaned against the cold bark. Henry sat down next to her and she was careful not to touch him with any part of her body.

With a noncommittal grunt, her husband took note of this and turned his back to her. After a few minutes his breathing slowed and Catherine stared open-eyed into the darkness. Every cracking branch made her wince, and an idea came to her mind. The silver dagger was still in Henry's belt and Catherine straightened to catch him. With a steady hand she pushed the fur blanket aside and ran her fingertips along his waistband, keeping her eyes on the direction in which she suspected her husband's face.

Her hand hit the cold material and she stifled a mischievous laugh. It would be so much easier to travel alone. She would simply return to the castle, Francis would surely protect her. She pulled the dagger from Henry's belt and put the point between the ribs of the former king. Before she could muster the courage to stab him, warm fingers closed around her wrist. Henry was awake. Catherine tried to wriggle out of her husband's hard grip, losing the dagger on her grip and almost hearing Henry grin.

"You never sleep with your back to your angry queen," he continued to hold her wrist, sounding almost amused.

"It's best not to even upset a queen," she hissed back, but Henry interrupted her. "All you can do is hiss and snarl? You used to talk to me differently when we were ... so close. "At the last words he had moved closer to her, whispering the last part of the sentence into her ear.

"Just don't give me a reason," Catherine's voice had taken on a warm, seductive undertone. She just did it to annoy him a bit and Henry raised both eyebrows in the dark. He summed this up as an invitation and released her wrist.

"I'll give you reasons for quite different sounds," he then promised and put a hand on her neck.

"I bet you forgot how to do that long ago," Catherine replied, reaching for the collar of his shirt.

"We'll see," he murmured, closing her lips with his. A long-lost passion awoke in Catherine as Henry untied her hair from the red cloth. She opened the string on his shirt and he pulled it over his head. With his strong arms around his waist, he pulled Catherine closer to him. She embroiled him in a passionate kiss as his hand wandered under her clothes. His touch elicited a throaty groan from his wife. As she drew in a breath, her thoughts cleared in one fell swoop.  
Suddenly, Henry felt her hand on his chest, pushing him hard backwards. He let go of her and met her eyes, which shimmered in the faint moonlight.

"No." A single word, and he felt the arousal of the last few minutes - no, weeks, months, years - dissipate in a single second.

"How..."no"?"

"No, Henry, we can't do that."

"Your body tells me something else ..." Like a drowning man to the last piece of driftwood, Henry clung to those words.

"Henry, please." He was surprised, he had seldom heard her plead like that, if he ever did.

"Okay," a little disappointed, he turned his back to her again.

Then, in the next moment, he heard her body dropping into the foliage beside him and felt her warmth on his back, which didn't help him sort out his thoughts or even fall asleep. This woman was his downfall.

"Catherine?", He didn't turn to her and waited for a break in the silence through her voice.

"Yes?"

"Why not? Why couldn't you let that happen now, I..."

"Henry," she interrupted quickly, "shut up and don't make the situation any worse than it already is."

She turned and pulled the fur over her shoulders. Although the wind had decreased, she was cold. She couldn't help admitting she felt like home in Henry's arms. But every ounce of warmth, every slightest hint of well-being he gave her, hurt. It has always been like that. Well, since he had preferred Diane over her.

* * *

 _Catherine woke up in an empty bed in the morning. As she groped next to her, all she could feel was the coolness of the sheet and she straightened up. She remembered every bizarre detail, every speck of dust that danced in the golden light of the sun's rays. The night before they had had a fight, essentially it had been about the same thing as always. The brisk letter contact with Diane, the lack of attention Henry gave her._

 _Catherine tried not to think too much about how the whole thing would end and if it would escalate further. She made an offer of peace to Henry and asked her maids to provide her the dress which Henry loved so much. It was made of dark green velvet with gold embroidery. The cut flattered her figure without being too daring. She left her hair half down, Henry loved to touch her hair, which glistened like spun gold in the sunlight._

 _Only a few minutes later Catherine made her way to breakfast. She hoped he would be a little mellower and with good hopes she entered the dining room. What she saw there made her stop in_ _confusion_ _._

 _A dark-haired girl, about her age, ran to Henry, who was standing with his back to Catherine. With a cry of joy, the pretty girl fell into the arms of the king. Catherine watched the happy reunion and the confusion gave way to realization._ _The shiny hair, the full lips, the fawn eyes. Diane. At that moment, Catherin de Medici's heart broke for the first time. She had no idea how many times one would trample on the small parts._

 _While Henry still hadn't noticed Catherine and he sank with Diane in a heartfelt kiss, Catherine's eyes filled with tears and she disappeared silently out of the room._

 _She left her chambers only for the meeting with the German ambassador. Henry barely paid any attention to her, he made no explanation and she didn't expect it either. With a cold_ _mien_ _, she stood by the day. Slowly, Catherine cooled._

* * *

Soooo idk if any of you noticed, I stole the last part of this chap from my oneshot "don't pretend"

If you liked the chap, leave a review, if you didn't... well, leave a review.

Special thanks to Missi, she's the reason you have no Cathry "scene" in this chap lmao

Love, Lucy


	5. Chapter 5

Mary clutched the filthy piece of paper tightly in her right hand as she hurried through the corridors of the castle. She stopped in front of Nostradamus' rooms and opened the door without knocking. The seer flinched over a few herbs and raised his head in surprise. "Your Majesty, what brings you to me?"

"I found that," Mary held up the note, "in one of the secret passages. It seems to be addressed to you."  
She put the dirty piece of paper in his open palm and he read the few words that were written on it.  
"Can you explain that?" the young queen asked, and he continued to look at the paper. "Nostradamus," she urged him, "I need to know if Catherine and Henry are in danger."

Catherine woke up and looked around. The feeling of being watched had awakened her. She looked around in the dim light of the early morning and thought she recognized a figure. Carefully, she groped for her husband's upper arm without taking her eyes off the shadow.

"Henry," she whispered urgently, digging her fingers into his flesh, "Henry!"  
"What is it, woman?" He mumbled, trying to shake off her hand. "We are being watched."

"Certainly only a deer," Henry tried to dodge the coming situation, but made a sigh of pain when she didn't let go of him. Furious, he straightened and looked in the direction Catherine looked so doggedly.

"We're leaving," he decided a second later, also averting his eyes, "we have to get away."

He got up and then helped her to her feet against her will. Quickly they stuffed their few belongings in the bag and ran to the horse, which had already brought them so far. When they had ascended, Henry urged the animal to gallop and they left. Catherine hardly paid any attention to the road, she kept glancing back, but couldn't see anyone.

Only after some time the two relaxed a bit, the road became wider and was crowded with traders and farmers. Henry inquired about Cherrueix and learned that they were only an hour away. Catherine exhaled inwardly. Being close to her husband almost drove her crazy. Torn between desire and hatred, she wanted to get down from this horse as soon as possible.

The hour passed faster than expected and finally they reached the desired village. Henry was shown the way and they came to an abandoned smithy. As soon as they had stopped the horse, Catherine was already standing on her own legs. "I hope you are able to do something else than commanding people around and climbing whores including Diane," Catherine said, looking at the cold hearth.

Henry snorted and led the horse around the one-room house to put it in the small box. Meanwhile, Catherine opened the door and stepped into the small, cool room. There were two straw sacks on a wooden frame, and a holey sheet was spread over it. A table, three chairs and a stove were also in the room. Catherine felt somehow cramped, from her chambers in the castle she was used to other dimensions. Sighing, she spread the skins on the bed and hid the bag of gold in one of the straw sacks. Henry stepped in and looked around. "That's not exactly an improvement compared to our sleeping place under the tree."

"And who exactly do we owe that to? Who fucked the countess out the window?" Catherine snapped ironically.

"Oh I don't know? Maybe you just bored me for decades and I had to replace you all the time?" Henry had tried to hurt his wife and with his remark he had hit a sore spot. Catherine's expression hardened and she turned away. The tears that stole into her eyes were a loss of self-control and that annoyed Catherine more than his words.

In order not to completely embarrass herself in front of him, she left the room without another word. As she stood outside, she hissed a breath and blinked away the tears. Something moved at the edge of the forest and again the figure appeared among the trees. Catherine froze in the middle of the movement. In a cruel way, it seemed familiar to her and the memory chased cold fear through her veins. Catherine took a step toward the forest and saw the figure move. The dusk made it difficult to see a face. Adrenaline rushed through her body and Catherine took some quick steps. "Who are you?" Catherine pressed out the words between quick breaths and clenched teeth, and when she had almost reached the edge of the forest, the figure vanished within a blink of an eye.

Gasping, the former queen stopped and stared breathlessly into the dark forest. Angry, she turned and walked back to the house.

"Did you calm down again?" Henry asked as Catherine entered with a red face.

"There was that figure again, Henry. It stood at the edge of the forest and ... it was watching us" she could barely suppress the panic in her voice.

"The same figure as you've seen it before?" he looked up.

"Yes, it was right there, I ..." Catherine's sentence was interrupted by a knock on the door.  
Henry pushed Catherine roughly aside, and crossed the room in two steps to open the door. It was a nobleman's servant, Catherine could tell by the clothes and she approached a little.  
"You are the village blacksmith? Could you reshape my mistress's horse? The sick farrier sent me to you."

At first, Henry couldn't find words, yes he could mist a horse, but he hadn't expected to be commissioned so soon after his arrival.

"I don't have time all day!" an exasperated woman's voice shocked both Catherine and Henry. The lady approached the little house and when she stepped into the field of vision of the former king, his expression changed.

It was Diane.

"Jose. I will stay here for a few days at the inn. Take care of everything."

The servant bowed and disappeared.

"All right," said Diane, stepping into the hut, "the king and queen of France have mixed among the people."

"Diane, speak quietly!" Henry reprimanded her and then asked: "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to visit a relative ... in fact, it's pure coincidence that we meet here," she paused, "yet I have heard of the life-threatening illness from that the king suffers. But I have to say, Henry" she smiled at him "you look very healthy."

"You should go and keep your mouth shut about our meeting," Catherine intervened and Diane gave her a disparaging look.

When Henry didn't argue, Diane shrugged and smiled at him. "Well, you know where to find me now." With these words she turned and left the house.

Catherine hadn't paid much attention to the last words, Henry was aware of her situation, he would not do anything stupid.

It had become evening, and without further words, Catherine had taken off her shoes and tunic in the darkness. The fireplace glowed faintly from the little fire Henry had made earlier. He, too, was finished and both crept under one of the skins on the straw sacks. They were careful not to touch each other, so Catherine slept in quickly, exhausted by the excitement of the day. In her dreams her paranoia tortured her, the mysterious figure appeared again and again. Sweat-bathed, she woke up from sleep and tried to recognize something in the darkness. But apart from absolute silence and a moonbeam that fell through the ajar door there was nothing to see or hear. But ... Catherine fumbled on the bed. Apart from a cold fur she felt nothing under her fingers, no warm skin, she heard no breath sounds. And then Catherine knew where her husband was. Paralyzed, she slid back to her lying position and stared with wet eyes into the darkness.


	6. Chapter 6

Alright peeps, I'm really sorry for being gone for so long (my muse is a little b*tch), I hope someone's still interested in this story... anyway, have fun reading and I promise more Frary in the next chapter :)

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The next morning, Catherine went outside to get some of the herbals she had seen the day before in the garden. Just when she went back in, Henry entered the room.

„How was your sleep?" she asked and looked at him with a fury in her eyes, she was so tired to hide. Henry stopped and looked at her in confusion.

„Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sure Diane didn't let you sleep at all" she added ironically.

„What is it this time?" Henry asked finally and had an annoyed tone in his voice whilst sitting on one of the chairs.

„You're seriously asking what's wrong with ME? I didn't leave my wife last night to fuck my mistress and risk our lives by blowing up our cover!"

„I didn't think of that, I'm sorry."

Catherine frowned. That was his first sorry in years. „But you're not sorry for sleeping with her?" she asked then.

„Why would I?" he was confused now and got up again to approach her. As soon as he got too close to her, he got almost hit by the broom in her hand „Because I am your goddam wife!"

Henry didn't know what to say for a moment „I am sorry" he said slowly.

She didn't reply, she ignored him actually and put the broom back in its corner. „Just shut up Henry" she told him „you are the reason we're stuck here!"

"Catherine, I already said, that I'm sorry" annoyed, Henry sat back on his chair.

She looked at him with zero understanding.

"You broke my heart. You left me and your family and all you can say is "sorry"?"

Henry was too suprised to answer. After a few seconds, some words left his mouth.

"Stop pretending you loved me. If I know one thing for sure, it's that you didn't love me ever. And you know, somehow I'm fine with that."

This sentence was like a slap in the face and Catherine jerked back.

"So this is what you're telling yourself?" she asked, "this is how you could justify bringing Diane back to court?"

"Don't you think that I needed someone to love? Do you even know how I felt when you pushed me away, or do you think I did it because I wanted to hurt you?" Henry's voice slightly got louder and Catherine made a step towards him.

"You replaced me with Diane! Couldn't you see, that she dragged you away from what was important? From what you loved, from everyone that cares for you?"

"Oh really and who might that be?" the sarcastic tone in his voice hurt like hell.

"Me, you idiot. Your family", she answered and leaned against the table, waiting for his reaction. It was silent for a solid two minutes.

Henry shook his head in confusion. "Catherine, I don't know how... forgive me."

She looked at him and remembered all the times she took him back into her bed, because he owned her heart. Her soul. Her life. And she remembered that day, when Diane came back.

"I can't" she said softly.

He got up and approached. His hands touched her shoulders and she was forced to look him in his eyes.

"Why? Can't you see I'm trying?" the desperate tone in his voice didn't touch her that much. But still...

"Well it's not enough. You tried for 30 seconds to fix 20 years", she pushed his hands away and left the room.

Henry stayed in the room for another couple minutes. It was too soon for him to feel guilty, his mind hadn't fully understood how this conversation had escalated so quickly.

After Catherine had left the room, he felt how empty it was without her. Henry thought back to the times when they still had been king and queen. No matter how much he had hurt her, she stayed the queen. His queen. Catherine had always supported him in making decisions not only those, that affected their reign and their land. She had always been there, though he seemed to prefer Diane over her. And within the years, Henry got used to Catherine. He didn't see, that every time she had helped him, she had done it because she loved him. Henry hadn't realized how painful it was for her. And still Catherine stayed.

But did she have a choice? He probably would have put her aside. And there was it. The guilt. Henry felt it crashing over himself and taking away his breath. He struggled in the attempt to make a few steps, but finally he made it to the door.

He pushed the door open and found Catherine sitting on the bench, sorting some herbal in her lap. He didn't see that her hands were wet from the tears that she wiped away as she had heard him approaching.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine", she answered with a strange tone in her voice, "Don't act like you would care."

Henry sighed and sat down next to her. Unwillingly she tried to gain some distance between them.

"I do care. I always did. And yes, I wasn't always able to show that. And I'm sorry for the pain you've gone through because of me."

Catherine looked up. "I would love to believe what you just said Henry. But the truth is, you can't really understand. The last time you slept with me, was because you were drunk. And as I told you that I was pregnant you didn't even listen to me. You asked me some weeks later why I didn't tell you. And as I said I already told you, you accused me of adultery. You weren't there when Margot was born. Although you knew that I could've died."

"I don't remember..." he began but his wife interrupted him.

"Of course you don't. And I can't really blame you. You were in an argument with Diane and... She can be really exhausting, you said this by yourself."

"Stop making excuses for me all the time. This makes me feel even worse!" his voice got louder slightly, "Why can't you just hate me? You played this role for years. And still..."

He didn't finish his sentence and Catherine quietly put the herbal aside.

"It's quite easy", she began, "Yes, you put Diane over me, over your own family and it will take some time to forgive you that. But some day I will. Because I love you. You are the love of my life. So no, I can't just hate you."

She placed a hand on his cheek, while smiling sadly. "We were very happy. And we loved each other."

Henry took her wrist and put her hand aside.

"I don't deserve any of this. I don't deserve..."

"Henry..." Catherine wanted to say something, but her husband got up and went back into the house.


End file.
